Intervertebral implants may be based on a ball and socket joint, i.e., they make pivotability possible in the same way in all directions. For example, an intervertebral disk prosthesis with two metallic end plates and an intermediate part made of polyethylene, in which a convex bearing surface slides on a concave surface, is described in WO 01/01893. In this prosthesis, the rotation center is located centrally in the middle between the anterior and posterior edges of the support bodies designed as metal plates. An intervertebral disk prosthesis in which the rotation center is displaced in the dorsal direction is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,258,031.
There remains a need for an improved intervertebral implant of the type described such that it is optimized in terms of wear, kinematics, and load distribution.